Planet Ark Environmental Foundation is an Australian non-profit environmental organization founded in 1992. Planet Ark works with partners in the public and private sectors to help find the simple ways in which their partners can reduce their impact on the planet. They focus on the environmental impacts of human consumption in the home, the workplace, and the community. It is best known for its high-profile recycling campaigns including 'Cartridges 4 Planet Ark', Australia's 'National Recycling Week', and the country's biggest annual community

tree planting Tree-planting is the process of transplanting tree seedlings, generally for forestry, land reclamation, or landscaping purpose. It differs from the transplantation of larger trees in arboriculture, and from the lower cost but slower and less re ...

event, National Tree Day. The organisation is operated from its office in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

History

Ark Australia was founded in 1992 by Paul Klymenko, Peter Shenstone and former Ark UK member Jon Dee. At the time kerbside recycling was in its infancy and environmental information was very limited. The organisation was commissioned to create 300 "Save the Planet" videos involving high profile celebrities and soon became known as Planet Ark. Several major events are organised by Planet Ark including National Tree Day, founded in 1996 with Olivia Newton-John; National Recycling Week and the Schools Recycle Right Challenge. The organisation began many high profile campaigns that have since either moved to other providers or become staples of the public recycling sphere, including 'Cards 4 Planet Ark', 'Phones for Planet Ark', Steel Can and Aluminium Can (Al Cans) recycling to name a few. To demonstrate that cleaning products could be as effective without heavy chemical composition, Planet Ark released the Aware Laundry powder range in 1994. This was soon followed by 100% recycled toilet tissue.

Campaigns

Planet Ark's campaigns seek to promote positive action that directly changes people's behavior. The organisation is non-political and non-confrontational, aiming to unite people and business in action. Planet Ark's main objectives are to promote sustainable resource use, encourage low carbon lifestyles and connect people with nature. Planet Ark works with businesses and endorses a number of commercial products it considers to be environmentally friendly in production and manufacture, including recycled toilet paper, cleaning products and car tyres. Planet Ark's campaigns include: * National Tree Day is Australia's largest tree-planting and nature care event. 2014 was the biggest year in the event's history with more than 4,000 sites and events and almost 300,000 people taking part with similar numbers participating every year. * National Recycling Week is the annual opportunity for Australian schools, workplaces, councils and the public to focus on the benefits of recycling. In 2013 more than 70,000 children participated in the Schools Recycling Right Challenge. * Cartridges 4 Planet Ark is a partnership between Planet Ark, the recycler Close the Loop and six of the largest cartridge manufacturers –

Brother A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-famili ...

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

Epson Seiko Epson Corporation, or simply known as Epson, is a Japanese multinational electronics company and one of the world's largest manufacturers of computer printers and information- and imaging-related equipment. Headquartered in Suwa, Nagano ...

, HP,

Konica Minolta is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda, Tokyo, with offices in 49 countries worldwide. The company manufactures business and industrial imaging products, in ...

and

Kyocera is a Japanese multinational ceramics and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded as in 1959 by Kazuo Inamori and renamed in 1982. It manufactures industrial ceramics, solar power generating systems, telecommunic ...

. By 2017 more than 30 million cartridges had been diverted from landfill with zero waste to landfill. * BusinessRecycling.com.au is designed to make recycling at work easy. The site lists recycling services for more than 90 different materials ranging from aluminium can to fly ash and from packaging to batteries. The site is made possible through support of the NSW EPA. * RecyclingNearYou.com.au is a comprehensive directory of the recycling services offered by more than 500 councils around Australia. Each year millions of enquiries are made to the site covering items that can go in their home recycling to those items that must be recycled through dedicated schemes. * Make it Australian Recycled was launched in partnership with

Australian Paper Australian Paper is the only Australian manufacturer of office, printing and packaging papers and manufactures more than 600,000 tonnes of paper annually for Australia, New Zealand and other export markets. Australian Paper was purchased from Pap ...

to bring attention to the fact that Australians are good at recycling, but not as active in purchasing products made from recycled materials. * Make it Wood is designed to encourage individuals and businesses to use responsibility sourced wood as a building material. Wood, when responsibly sourced, is a building material that is renewable, that stores carbon, and offsets more carbon-intensive materials like concrete and steel. Wood products are considered important in mitigating climate change. * Planet Ark Endorsed is a select range of products that offer a more environmentally responsible alternative to commonly used alternatives. The products must also be good quality and effective. Planet Ark only licenses its logo on quality products and services that, through their use, reduce our impact on the environment. Long-standing relationships include Orange Power and Aware Environmental, which produce cleaning products purchased by millions of Australians each year. Planet Ark's newest endorsement, Naturale Toilet Tissue, is manufactured in Australia from 100% recycled paper that is FSC certified. * Everyday Nature is Planet Ark's newest activity and emerges from the organisation's research into the health and wellbeing benefits of contact with nature for both kids and adults. * Planet Ark Power is a partnership between Planet Ark and a Queensland Energy startup called GoZERO Energy which both companies have entered into in order to speed the adoption of economically competitive commercial rooftop solar, energy storage and energy efficiency technologies. * The Australasian Recycling Label was developed by Planet Ark and Green Chip with the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation to create a standardised labelling system to allow consumers to make better decisions about packaging recyclability.

Celebrity supporters

Celebrities who have fronted Planet Ark campaigns include

Pierce Brosnan Pierce Brendan Brosnan (; born 16 May 1953) is an Irish actor and film producer. He is best known as the fifth actor to play secret agent James Bond in the Bond film series, starring in four films from 1995 to 2002 ('' GoldenEye'', '' Tomorro ...

Kamahl Kandiah Kamalesvaran ( ta, கந்தையா கமலேஸ்வரன்; born 13 November 1934), better known by his stage name Kamahl, is a Malaysian-born Australian singer and recording artist. His highest charting Australian single, ...

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Awards, Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one s ...

Jamie Durie Jamie Paul Durie OAM (born 3 June 1970) is an Australian horticulturalist and landscape designer, furniture designer, television host, television producer, and author of eleven books on landscape architecture, garden design and lifestyle. He i ...

Steve Irwin Stephen Robert Irwin (22 February 19624 September 2006), known as "The Crocodile Hunter", was an Australian zookeeper, conservationist, television personality, wildlife educator, and environmentalist. Irwin grew up around crocodiles and ot ...

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...

Dannii Minogue Danielle Jane Minogue () is an Australian singer, television personality, and actress. She initially gained recognition for her appearances on the television show '' Young Talent Time'' (1982–1988) and for her role as Emma Jackson on t ...

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...

Shelley Craft Shelley Craft (born 21 June 1976) is an Australian television personality. She is most well known for her long-running presenting roles on the Seven Network programs ''Saturday Disney'' from 1996 until 2002, and '' The Great Outdoors'' from 200 ...

Richard Branson Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is a British billionaire, entrepreneur, and business magnate. In the 1970s he founded the Virgin Group, which today controls more than 400 companies in various fields. Branson expressed ...

and TV personality Tim Webster. Current ambassadors include surfer

Layne Beachley Layne Collette Beachley (born 24 May 1972) is a former professional surfer from Manly, New South Wales. She won the World Championship seven times. Currently she is the chair of Surfing Australia. Surfing career At the age of 16 Beachley ...

, TV personality

James Treble James Treble is an Australian building and interior designer. He hosts the TV show ''Renovate Or Rebuild'', on Nine Network. He was a presenter on ''Open Homes Australia'', on 9Life. Treble is publicly known for his six-hour, live, co-hosting o ...

, ABC's ''

Gardening Australia ''Gardening Australia'' is an Australian lifestyle television program which suggests and promotes organic and environmentally friendly ways of gardening. It is created by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and airs on ABC TV, in an hour- ...

'' host

Costa Georgiadis Costa Georgiadis (born 1 January 1964) is an Australian landscape architect and television presenter. He is a second generation Australian of Greek descent. Georgiadis is currently hosting ''Gardening Australia'' on ABC and previously appeared as ...

, ''Grand Designs Australia'' host

Peter Maddison Peter Maddison is an Australian architect and television presenter. He is best known for presenting the TV series ''Grand Designs Australia'', which has been shown in Australia, New Zealand, The Netherlands and the UK. Early life and educatio ...

, author Anita Van Dyke, Dr Amanda Lloyd,

Magdalena Roze Magdalena Roze (born 1982) is an Australian (with Polish heritage) meteorologist, weather presenter and journalist. Early life Roze was a scholarship holder and graduate from the University of Sydney where she completed a Bachelor of Arts in ...

, Ranger Stacey, Candice Dixon and children's sensation

dirtgirlworld ''Dirtgirlworld'', stylized as ''dirtgirlworld'', is a children's television series, created by Cate McQuillen and Hewey Eustace of Mememe Productions.

. Popular with the Australian media for its focus on positive actions, Planet Ark's official spokesperson is former actress and television presenter turned environmentalist,

Rebecca Gilling Rebecca Gilling (born 3 November 1953 in Castlecrag, Sydney, Australia) is an Australian former model and actress, now environmentalist. Gilling is the daughter of World War II Navy personnel Douglas Gilling and prominent feminist campaigner ...

Criticism

Planet Ark's carbon capture and sustainable building materials campaign 'Make it Wood' was criticised by Jon Dee and Pat Cash who appeared on television to complain about the links to the timber industry and involvement in drafting the Australian Forestry Standard. which Nick Xenophon has said "raises some serious questions of a potential conflict of interest" and caused

Christine Milne Christine Anne Milne (; born 14 May 1953) is an Australian politician who served as a Senator for Tasmania. She was the leader of the parliamentary caucus of the Australian Greens from 2012 to 2015. Milne stepped down as leader on 6 May 2015, ...

to criticise the organisation. Planet Ark responded to the enquiries in a letter explaining its position in detail. The Australian Forestry Standard is an attempt to create an Australian specific standard, as opposed to the international

Forest Stewardship Council The Forest Stewardship Council A. C. (FSC) is an international non-profit, multistakeholder organization established in 1993 that promotes responsible management of the world's forests via timber certification. It is an example of a market ...

and Planet Ark recommends choosing FSC wood products.

History

Campaigns

Celebrity supporters

Criticism

See also

References

External links